BXBX NOVEL Chapter 36: Stacked Log Village [2]
"Are you the village chief?"
"Yes!"
Carl treated the old man with gray hair as if it were natural and spoke arrogantly without even getting off the horse.
That was the right decision. If he got off the horse now, his small body would be exposed, and if he was polite, they might be suspicious or look down on Carl.
"I am Carl Felt Hardion, who has come to subdue monsters in the Barony of Hilfin under orders from His Majesty the Emperor."
"Huh!"
Surprised voices murmur from everywhere.
However, when Bilford, who was quietly behind Carl, turned around with wide eyes, everyone fell silent.
To them, it didn\'t matter at all that Carl was the sickly 4th prince. They don\'t even know Carol\'s name.
However, they could clearly tell that he was a noble person who bore the name of \'Hardion\'.
The royal family came in person! We survived!
"I want to hear more details."
"Yes, yes... !"
However, unlike just before when he was shouting with joy, the village chief barely answered in a trembling, strained voice.
To the commoners, the emperor is like a god. Now in front of him his son of that God, He deserves to be afraid.
To prevent his small body and thin face from being revealed by the light of the torch, Carl closed his cloak, lowered his head, hid himself, and listened to the village chief in silence.
Thanks to this, no one could see Carl\'s face gradually hardening.
Bilford and the soldiers were unable to control their expressions, so they could not hide the agitation on their faces.
Additions were added here and there to the village chief\'s story without permission.
Thanks to that, Carl, who had drawn the overall outline, was silent for a long time.
The people of the piled log village began to tremble with anxiety as Carl remained silent.
After a long moment of silence, Carl grabs the reins and turns the horse\'s head to look back at Catherine.
"Lady Catherine. I would like to hear your opinion."
Carl still called Catherine highly. But his voice was never as soft as before.
A firm voice as if he, as a commander, only listens to his subordinates\' opinions.
"If the situation is so critical, it is right to abandon the village, retreat to the castle, strengthen our defenses, and wait for reinforcements."
The villagers murmur at Catherine\'s heartless words.
This means that it doesn\'t matter if everyone here dies.
"If that were the case, I would have kept playing stupid back at the castle. Make decisions about the country rather than about our own safety."
Carl proudly raised his chin and spoke.
The red tassel on the helmet is vigorously lifted, revealing its authority like a flash of light.
"Then we must prevent the gnolls from scattering out of the forest. Once the gnolls leaves the forest, it gets out of hand. It is right to join the frontline troops and subdue the gnolls with wildfire-like momentum."
Catherine also drew a sword of resolute determination to match Carl\'s majestic appearance and handed the hilt to Carl.
"Great."
Carl nods his head heavily, then turns his head again and looks down at the trembling village chief.
The shaded face was more majestic than his original.
"We will head towards the forest. If the troops at the front were isolated for a long period of time, there would be disruptions in supply."
Carl tried her best to keep his head down.
It would be easy to get over it if he left everything to Catherine right now, but then it wouldn\'t be worth the effort.
Recalling the numerous pieces of information he had seen in the imperial archives, Carl continued speaking after a pause.
"By the authority of His Majesty the Emperor, conscription is hereby implemented. Gather the men and horses, and load the supplies."
"… Ha, ha!"
"This is a just and lawful conscription carried out by Lord Carl, who received the authority of His Majesty the Emperor."
"Move now."
Before the shocked village chief could say anything, Catherine came forward on her horse and spoke firmly in a voice that sounded like steel.
Until now, she had followed Carl intentions and taken a step back, but now it was time to act for her lord as his knight.
Catherine\'s words filled the log village with fear.
If they refused to conscript members of the imperial family upon orders from the emperor. The entire village will be massacred.
"Suh… … . Phew… … ."
Catherine and Bilford pretended not to notice the slightly trembling sound of breathing coming from Carl, who was sitting on a large horse looking down at the frightened and frantic villagers.
\'I am not Nero.\'
Carl muttered to himself.
\'And these are not the swords and staffs of Count Beria, who can manage enormous funds.\'
In the original work, the monster subjugation was quickly resolved by Ias using the power of Count Beria.
What Nero said when he returned: \'It wasn\'t a big deal.\'
A mission chosen by Emperor Azgoth to empower Nero in the originaln work, and Carl in the present.
Among the many, many tasks, how on earth were they going to give them strength by entrusting them with the task of subjugating trivial monsters?
\'I could die.\'
Carl felt an eerie fear.
In this place where he was pushed by Azgoth, he can feel the inevitable death slowly scythe around his neck like the dark night sky.
Barony Hilfin is a small fiefdom.
However, no gnoll would dare threaten it.
If it was original work.
Bilford told him that two villages near the western forest were destroyed.
However, from what he heard in the stacked log village, all the nearby villages have collapsed, and the survivors have gathered and are barely holding a sit-in at \'Sound of the Ax Village\', which is the starting point from the forest to Hilfin Castle.
Doesn\'t this mean that the castle is falling apart so helplessly that they can\'t even properly understand the situation?
Finally, a large outline is revealed.
The nobles of Baron Hilfin, including Maldin, are hiding something. So, the flood of gnolls was intentionally understated in the report.
Maybe it really wasn\'t a big deal when the report was first posted. However, now the entire territory is in such a terrible situation that it appears to be destroyed.